There are a few books I can recommend to help you understand the psychology of the people you’re likely to encounter in our times. Many of them I haven’t formally reviewed, although I should. You can start with The Fourth Turning, linked above.

The first book I recommend you read (after 4th Turning) is The Evolutionary Psychology Behind Politics by Anonymous Conservative. He wrote his second book under the name “Michael Trust.” He truly is anonymous beyond the point of paranoia. When Red Ice wanted to interview him, he sent Matt Forney instead. You can find AC’s blog here. I read his book in 2013, and have been reading his blog ever since. His work is truly valuable and should be archived for future generations.

The Evolutionary Psychology Behind Politics takes an old evolutionary theory commonly called r/K Theory and applies it to politics. He explains it better than I can, but the concept is simple. Different environments select for different factors. If your ancestors came from a warm climate where food was everywhere, you likely wouldn’t need a high IQ or a long time preference. If your ancestors came from a colder climate, you’d have to have a higher IQ and you’d have to adapt to be able to plan ahead; to grow and store up food for winter. A/C divides people into r (rabbits) and K (Wolves). This isn’t like the Biblical sheep and wolves; the wolves (if you are one) are the good guys in this theory.

Rabbits have no or little in-group loyalty, are conflict-averse, breed prolifically, and have little investment in child rearing. Wolves, on the other hand, have strong in-group loyalty, are bred for a world of conflict, and have high investment in breeding and offspring.

Contrast that with the difference between the average liberal and conservative in the world and you’ll see where this fits in.

As a bonus, read his second book: How To Deal With Narcissists. In it, he explains what a narcissist is, why they are that way, and how to avoid them or deal with them if you must. This also explains a lot about how our world works and how the people who run it operate. Chances are, you know a few narcissists. This may help you a lot. It definitely helped me understand a few people I’ve been around.

Next up is SJWs Always Lie by Vox Day. He explains what an SJW is, what “The Narrative” is, how they operate, how they attack, and how to fight back. He also explains the difference between rhetoric and dialectic, and how you need to be able to operate in both. He also shows (much from personal experience) how if you are attacked by SJWs, you’re pretty much screwed as few if any will come to your aid. But never apologize, and never back down. That is blood in the water to them. His next book in the series, SJWs Always Double Down, should be out Oct 9. I pre-ordered it. SJW’s Always Lie, if read in the order I present, builds on Evolutionary Psychology and Narcissists.

Another book to aid in your understanding of our current times is Cuckservative: How “Conservatives” Betrayed America by Vox Day and John Red Eagle. If you’re a conservative and/or a Republican, and you wonder why Republican and conservative politicians always puss out and surrender, this book will explain it to you.

A few more I’ll add as sort of honorable mentions are Mike Cernovich’s Gorilla Mindset and Ivan Throne’s 9 Laws. You can’t control what happens to you, but you can control how you respond to it. Mindset is a powerful tool. Say what you will about some other aspects of Cernovich, but his book is very powerful and practical. I haven’t finished 9 Laws yet. I’m about halfway through. In the first part of the book, Throne lays out what his nine laws are, and what the dark triad is. These are mindset tools you can use to operate in and understand the world around you.

I could go back through my list of books and find some more academic, longer, harder to read ones. All of these books are easy to read, yet highly comprehensive. If you want to know more about why the people in the world are the way they are, and how to respond to or avoid them, read the books on this list.